Late, in August a fresh draft of troops left camp at Heliopolis en route for the front.
As they passed the Luna Park hospital they greeted their wounded
comrades with rounds of cheers. One man swathed in bandages leaned from a
window and called out, "Are you mugs off at last?" The reply went
back, "Yes, we are going to dish the Turks who gave yon blokes a
hiding." "Are you downhearted?" yelled the man from the window. The
warriors to be were taken in completely. "No," they cried in chorus. The
bandaged man grinned with triumph.At the top of his voice he shouted, "Well, you soon will be." Anzac humour is ironic and poignant, but purely Australian.

It was men from that same brigade who had good reason to be downhearted
a few days later. They were aboard the torpedoed transport Southland.
This is how they showed it. When the rescuing ships arrived they found
men facing death to the strains of "Tipperary" and ''Australia will be
There." One boat party at least was thinking of home. The cries from
old Broadmeadows were not forgotten. They were shouting "Cab, cab,
right into Brunswick, right into Brunswick," and " 'ot pie or a pastie."

Having transhipped to a light, fast vessel the men of one unit left
Mudros a few evenings later for the front. A submarine guard was posted
around the vessel to the extreme disgust of the unfortunate few. One
man took mild vengeance. Waiting until a certain nervous subaltern was
behind him he raised his rifle and took meticulous aim apparently at
some object in the water. The officer became excited, and anxiously
asked the man what he was aiming at. The reproachful look he gave the
man when he learned that it was only a piece of seaweed spoke volumes.

The battalion landed that night, and the next day saw a fatigue party
going to the beach for stores. An observer on Gaba Tepe saw them, and
Beachy Bill opened out with shrapnel. This was their first taste of
shell fire. The strategic retreat back to the shelter of a communication
trench was one of the quickest movements seen on the peninsula. One
man who was noted for his "good oil" about racehorses shook his head
sorrowfully at the sky where the shells were bursting! "This is no place
for a parson's son," he declared solemnly. "They'll miss me in the
old home," he ruminated a little later. They'll see me name on the roll
of honour, and be sorry they ever cut me off."

It was a hot, broiling day when the battalion wound its way wearily up
Bridges road, to the head of the gully, each man was in full marching
order - 200 rounds of ammunition, four days' rations, and firewood. How
each man longed for the time when he could strip himself of impeding
habiliments and stand half naked in the sun like the grinning veterans
from the landing standing by. A well-preserved new arrival raised the
first laugh. "How far to the next pub?" he asked plaintively as the
perspiration rolled down his face. A brown, bearded boy answered him,
"Yer'll get a ration of rum before yer go out on a charge, cobber."

It was General McCay who said that the keenest soldier possible was the
Australia during his first week at Anzac. He will watch like a hawk,
and snipe continuously. All fatigue work is done by eager volunteers.
Then he becomes at home in the trenches, and is a little wily. Men need
to be detailed. One night a new arrival was observing from his post
when he heard a rattling among the empty bully beef tins just in front
of the sandbags. Crack, bang, crack went his rifle as he emptied his
magazine into the spot, and the tins strewn in front rattled like
castanets. Then there was silence. "Yell out Allah, yer cow," he cried
as he let loose another fusillade.Patrolling
officers rushed to the spot, and being unable to see anything warned
the man against hallucinations. A careful scrutiny next morning,
however, revealed the body of the midnight marauder. There was a
mutilated rat 6ft. in front of the parapet.

The schemes to lighten work were many. Carrying ammunition up to the
firing line was a job which would make, a coal lumper grunt. There were
thousands of rounds of captured Turkish ammunition, and several
Turkish rifles about the trenches. These were quickly commandeered, and
made to serve a double purpose. They saved the olders the need of
going down the gully for cartridges, and enabled them to keep their own
rifles clean. Owing to the broken hours of duty sleep was naturally
not hard to woo. During the bombardments men hiding in dug-outs and
saps waited anxiously to see the destructive effect of the shells on
the trenches. It was they who had to do the rebuilding. While a heavy
bombardment was on one day a shell was heard to burst with a roar in the
trenches. Sitting at the mouth of a sap one man was heard to say
sorrowfully to himself, "There goes my bit of shut-eye."